The city stood bright, pendulous above a subterranean sea. It bloomed in the darkness, illuminated by the alchemical lights that hung upon every dwelling place: the mass of Sinnheim, brushed by the physical manifestation of the Ür-Mind below. Rising above the whispering waters were halls hewn from the living rock, gilded and adorned with fiery rubies lapped in sapphire and graven with the scenes of alien worldscapes, and above it all, the Citadel of the Sighted Ones, the Völur. Born of the three great Bloodlines, their ancestry harkening back to the times of Sigfrid, Alfhild, and Inkeri, who first led the people to the Mind That Called, the Völur ruled unchallenged; chosen at each generation by the calling of the very entity that had drawn their ancestors, their lineages intricately manipulated to produce only the most psychomantically sensitive of individuals. Only once had the capital been abandoned: during the invasion of the Glooms, whose touch was most terrible to a people so attuned to the power of the soul. But these days Sinnheim shone as proudly as it ever had, maintaining a firm hold over its surface settlements.

Aetheldred leant languidly upon a windowsill of the Citadel, gazing out across the sparkling expanse. Things were definitely looking up. For a long time she had thought herself forever cut off from any possibility of mastering the psychomantic arts. Since the accident… There had been no point in anyone paying much attention to a child of the Blood without any of its vaunted abilities. So those who had once fussed over her had turned indifferent, focusing entirely on her brother. Not that she could ever resented Hengist: he had been one of the few people not to turn away from her then.

But Erathil had fixed her. (How exactly, she still couldn’t determine. But she was thankful. Which was saying a lot: gratitude was not usually a sentiment she found herself prone to.) Suddenly, she had a future again. A home in which she was welcome, and her position more than a social technicality. It had felt rather satisfying, the discomfiture of the thegns when they first found out. All that wasted time. I saw through them ages ago. I know they’re no friends of mine.

But let’s not get broody. Seriously, screw that. She massaged her temples to relieve the slight headache that had begun to build there. Yes, things had improved. Still. There were times when the weight of newfound responsibilities got somewhat stressful. What I need is a stiff drink.

It was time to visit Damntown again.

Uukumanu - ranger and spirit seekerTuvstarr - Black Queen of Pharon GlosImliss - High Elven researcher in Blood MagicAetheldred - Sorcerer and psychomancer, daughter of the Völva of the Blood of Alfhild